(Zaman Al Wasl)- Sidra al-Yousef, a Syrian refugee in Denmark, finished the first section of secondary school in a Danish school with full marks in the final exams. She was accepted to represent Denmark at the World Youth Summit in Switzerland in coming weeks. She was appointed as an official translator in the town of Toftlund (southern Demark) where she lives. Sidra achieved all this, and she has not yet completed the second decade of her life.
Sidra lived for two years in Damascus after her family fled from her home city of Aleppo. Her father was a dentist and a member of the People's Assembly in Syria, but he dissented and had to seek political asylum in Denmark three and a half years ago. After the war intensified in Damascus, Sidra and her family members who were still in Damascus moved to live with her father. In Denmark, Sidra learnt Danish in six months, enrolled in the STUK school and passed the tenth grade with full marks.
Speaking to Zaman al-Wasl, Sidra said had to attend a compressed high school to study subjects that are usually taught in three years in just two years. She explained that she chose this to avoid losing a year, and through the experience, she found she has the academic and scientific capacities to overcome this challenge. She explained it was a challenge, especially given the circumstances of asylum and the difficulty of the Danish curriculum which is completely different to the curriculum taught tin Syria.
The outstanding student added that the greatest difficulty she faced was language. Sidra commented, “Studying scientific material in a new language was not easy.”
After completing her first year of school with full marks, Sidra prepares to begin her second year in August. She spoke of her ambition to prove herself not only in this upcoming year but also later on once she enters university in Denmark.
Sidra pointed out that the new educational system acted as a barrier and a challenge especially when she began studying. Sidra achieved full marks in the tenth grade in Syria and was one of the top students in Syria, but in Denmark the authorities refused to recognize her diploma. She was forced to retake the tenth grade, but rather than stop her, Sidra explained that this promoted her to intensify her efforts to catch up on what she missed.
Sidra pointed out that there is real support for the talents and capacities in Denmark regardless of nationality or color. She explained that her school chose her along with other outstanding students to participate in activities, events and science clubs. After she had obtained full marks, her school principal contacted a Danish newspaper for them to interview her inside the school. She said many Danes expressed their admiration for what she managed to achieve and excel in during a relatively short period of time.
She explained that her family played the largest role in encouraging her to study and providing the optimal conditions for her to excel. She said they encourage her in Denmark as they did in Syria where she was able to achieve first place in all her scholastic endeavors.
She added that “Exceling does not come about overnight, but accumulates over a period of several years,” however, she continued that, “her love of studying is one of the most important factors that contributed to her success and achieving what she aspires to.”
In tandem with her academic excellence, and due to her fluency in Danish, Sidra was able to identify many job opportunities and engage in daily life to help young Syrians who are facing obstacles integrating into Danish society. She said that Denmark is a small country that is not open to foreigners and refugees in particular. The media has also played a role in perpetuating a negative attitude towards refugees, so she saw it as part of her role to contribute to bridging the gap between refugees and Danes.
Sidra participated in many activities organized by Danish universities through scientific clubs that are held for outstanding students. She explained that earlier this year, her school chose her and several other outstanding students to participate in a two-day science event held by one of the largest scientific centers in Denmark.
In the event, she conducted many scientific experiments and competed in physics, chemistry and mathematics. Sidra is expected to participate alongside 58 other students from across Denmark in the Science Olympics in the field of Biotechnology which will be held for one week in a Danish university in the upcoming period.
Sidra applied to participate in the World Youth Summit, and she was among the 60 young men and women who were excepted from the 1200 applicants. She explained that her application was accepted to participate in the summit to be held in Switzerland in the coming weeks based on her scientific activities, her work as an Arabic-Danish translator, and her work as a volunteer with a group of refugees whom she helped to learn Danish and become better acquainted with Danish society.
Speaking about her upcoming plans, Sidra pointed out that she is working on a new project that aims to provide a detailed explanation of the Danish high school system for Syrian students as young people suffered the most injustices due to the war and the circumstances that have prevented them from continuing their education. Sidra added that she has noticed that there are several obstacles, other than language, facing Syrian students who have a chance of studying in Denmark including choosing the appropriate educational setting.
“There are great opportunities in Denmark, but refugee students are absent because of the language,” she said. She wants to explain these opportunities and present them to refugee students. In addition to helping Syrian refugees learn Danish, Sidra’s project will build bridges between Syrian students and Danish society especially in the field of education.
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